(S13E08) Greetings, all you ER-heads! Just a quick note of clarification. Last week's review was mislabeled as episode six. It was actually number seven of the 13th season of ER. We are now back on track with the numbering.

Now that business is out of the way, let's bound ahead with this week's review. I would label this as a standard episode. Nothing earth-shattering occurred, no huge character developments. Just another episode to move the season along. Not to say it wasn't good, because it was. I guess you could say it was a placeholder episode, taking a breath before something bigger occurs.

Let's highlight a few important points, shall we? First, the plot with the homeless boy who comes in with rabies. Maybe I'm wrong, but it felt very mythical. Almost Lord of the Rings-like. There was the 'Blue Lady' with the secret name who was the heroine, and the 'Blood-Face Lady' who was the villain. Heck, with all of his curly hair the boy named Teller looked like a young Frodo Baggins. I wonder if we'll see those kids again in a future episode.

Next, let's talk about Pratt. Greg, Greg, Greg. The man cannot get a decent roommate. First it was his mentally-challenged brother or cousin (I can't remember) who brought nothing but trouble to his apartment. Now, it's his brother, who seems to be playing for the other team. Pratt catches his brother and a 'friend' in the bathroom and promptly kicks them both out of the house. But, cooler heads prevail and he chases after his brother to bring him back to the apartment. This shows that the writers are putting a little more maturity into Greg; just enough to second-guess his rash decisions. Heck, he apologizes to Gates after punching him in the mouth.

Speaking about Tony, he, Neela and Hope were the focal point of this episode. I guess you could have named tonight's show ER: The Next Generation. After proving to be quite annoying when she first appeared at the beginning of the season, Hope is starting to grow on me. This may be due to the fact that the writers have stopped making her a one-note character and began giving her a meatier role. At this point, her path is beginning to resemble that of one Doctor John Carter. Hopefully we'll see her bloom into a full-fledged intern in a few weeks.

Some other items to discuss:

• Doctors Morris and Barnett, as well as Samantha, were definitely nowhere to be seen this week. Archie had his moment last week, so it was logical he didn't appear. But, Samantha and Ray haven't had a decent plot all season. Especially Samantha, who came down quickly after her kidnap ordeal. I know Sam will be getting a new love interest, but Ray is out there in limbo. I hope to see him get a meaty storyline soon.
• It looks like Kerry may be getting a new love interest as well, in the form of the news producer who is helping her with on-air medical reports. Now that Kerry has gotten a hip replacement and can walk around without a cane it would be good to see her go out into the dating scene again.
• Someone please tell me what that whole scene was about between Abby and the guy at the bar. Was there some reason for it? Maybe the guy is a plant that Curtis Ames put there to wean more information out of Abby. It just seemed very out of place.

Oh, about Abby. It looks like the focus is on her next week. Yes, there is an episode of ER on Thanksgiving, as there has been for several years now (perhaps since the show began). So, if you're not too sleepy from all of the turkey you digest, please tune in next week.